“I deeply regret the passing of ex-president Colom, a man of deep democratic convictions and great social empathy,” Orlando Blanco, party leader of Colom’s centrist UNE party, wrote in a statement.
Colom took office as president with promises, among other things, to fight poverty in the country.
In 2018, Colom was singled out along with almost his entire former government in a corruption scandal surrounding the procurement of buses during his time in power.
Colom denied all guilt and the suspicions did not have time to be tried in court. But in 2021, the United States put him on a list of corrupt officials.
The ex-president was married to Sandra Torres, who has announced that she is running in Guatemala’s presidential election in June.